Deposit Automation and Mobile Deposits Top 2013 ATM Innovation Survey

The ability to make envelope-free deposits at ATMs is the most important technological advancement in recent years for ATM deployers around the world, a new survey said.

And the ability to make mobile transactions is the top technology expected to fuel future ATM growth, according to the survey by the ATM Industry Association, a trade association that claims 3,700 members in 60 countries.

In ATMIA’s first International ATM Innovation Survey, more than half of respondents identified deposit automation, which began in 2004 with approval of the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, as the top recent ATM innovation, and forecast mobile/contactless transactions as the fastest-growing value-adding service in the next five years.

“The international success of deposit automation shows the value of innovation at ATMs and we believe we are now entering the most intense period of innovation in our industry in recent memory,” said Mike Lee, CEO of ATMIA.

According to the survey profile, respondents were senior level executives with significant experience in the ATM and payments industries.

More than half of respondents indicated that tighter regulations and mandates by the primary global card brands represent the biggest block to innovation in the ATM industry.

“This is clearly a time of increased innovation in our industry but we need to be careful about the stifling effects of over-regulation,” Lee added.

“While deposit automation has made the biggest recent impact on technological progress in our industry,” he said, “the survey found that the future of innovation lies in greater linkages between ATMs and customer-owned devices in order to create a payments hub where online payments, mobile payments and ATM transactions are interconnected in a seamless customer-focused system.”

To view the full results of the ATMIA Innovation Survey, visit the white papers section on theATMIA website at www.atmia.com.